Marissa Nolan-Layman

(10 comments, 63 posts)

A Freelance Social Media Strategist & Copywriter/Editor for hire, Marissa is a geeky mom striving to make the world a better place one Star Wars action figure at a time. X-Men & Star Wars are the primary fandoms she enjoys. She loves all things social media but primarily hangs out on twitter at @MissMarissaMae

LOS ANGELES, CA (June 17th, 2014) – The stars of Machinima’s hit zombie comedy BITE ME have stepped
behind the camera to create an epic sci-fi short titled OUTPOST. Filmmakers Justin Giddings and Ryan
Welsh first made their mark as Greg and Mike on the Lionsgate-sponsored zom-com project that has since
topped 55 million views. After their first film won Best Drama on the festival circuit, they partnered with VFX
wizard Paul Lada (PROMETHEUS, HARRY POTTER) to develop the visual effects for OUTPOST. The story
centers around a highly trained cosmonaut who along with his android assistant/love interest attempts to
make first contact as a doomsday device quickly approaches their remote outpost.

Of their first film, Geek News Network had this to say: “This was absolutely amazing. It ended up being one of
the best things I’ve ever seen, let alone one of the best shorts. If the filmmakers decided to turn this into a
feature length flick I would camp out for it. This right here is worth the price of admission alone.” – Jim Lincoln

OUTPOST stars Ryan Welsh as Citizen Gordon and Ryann Turner (WEEDS, UP ALL NIGHT, THIS IS
NORMAL) as his android companion A.R.I.A.. Hundreds of years in the future, humanity has long expected to
discover intelligent life but has failed to do so. The search for extraterrestrials is led by a group of
warrior/scientists known as Citizens. On the furthest outpost on the edge of our galaxy, Citizen Gordon
suspects that a giant wall of blackness known as the Beyond floating near the outpost hides intelligent life. He
desperately tries to make contact as the Starbreaker (a doomsday device designed to destroy the Beyond)
approaches from Earth. When tensions rise, he’s forced to choose between saving A.R.I.A. or saving
humanity.

To bring this film to life, the filmmakers are shooting for an ambitious $60k on Indiegogo. Unlike most
campaigns, their film is fully tax-deductible through a 501c3 partnership. Some perk highlights include custom
sketches of donors set in the world of Outpost accompanied by personalized mission dossiers, character bios,
and limited-run embroidered patches. We are also offering an exclusive line of collectible KidRobot™
designer toys hand painted by the filmmaking team!

For more information on the film and their Indiegogo campaign, visit www.OutpostTheFilm.com. For additional
questions and inquiries or to schedule an interview with the filmmakers, please contact producer Lynn
Thomas at 502-386-9754 or giddywelshmen@gmail.com.

ABOUT GIDDYWELSHMEN PRODUCTIONS
Giddy Welshmen Productions is comprised of a creative team of filmmakers headed by actor/writer/directors
Justin Giddings and Ryan Welsh. Together, they now work as filmmakers whose projects range in scope from
sci-fi to digital comedy series. They can be reached at giddywelshmen@gmail.com.

So you want to write for Nerds in Babeland? That’s great! We are currently looking to add new writers to our lineup of talented ladies. At this time we are unfortunately unable to pay our writers, but are looking at ways to change that in the future. In order to ensure that we are a good fit for one another please email us the following information:

3) A pitch for your first story. Before becoming a regular writer we need to assess if your story ideas will work for our site. We expect our writers to not only post reviews of the books and comics we have available for you but also to write op-eds and other pieces.

4) Why do you want to write for us?

5) Your top three geeky fandoms (or less if you are focused on only one or two)

6) Outline your experience with WordPress (no experience is necessary we just want to know how much training will be needed)

We are currently looking for someone to run a weekly nerd themed advice column, summer movie reviews, convention coverage (press passes are possible for some conventions) and a series of posts covering a show with a large fandom that the writer has never seen before.

We look forward to hearing from you and adding your name to the roster of talented ladies!

I don’t like to write negative reviews, I really don’t. Typically if I do not like something to the point that I cannot find something positive I will elect to just not review it. I know that some people think all press is good press, but I don’t like to tear people down especially since a number of the things I read for review are from small indie publishers..

Steam Wars FCBD Edition

That being said, I could not in good conscience not share my thoughts on the Free Comic Book Day issue of Steam Wars. I was so excited for this title, a parody of something that I LOVE (Star Wars) combined with something else that I love (Steampunk). I had really high hopes, sadly what I got was beyond disappointing.

For starters, I was unimpressed by the artwork, it wasn’t bad, but it certainly wasn’t what I would consider good. I did enjoy the anime style art for the Princess Leia character, Duchess Imoen. Unfortunately, that’s where the good stops with the Duchess. The source character, Princess Leia is a strong, confident and capable woman. She has been one of my heroes since I was a child and what was done with her in this comic was beyond unacceptable.

Duchess Imoen is a classic, helpless “damsel in distress” who has to rely on Captain Hansel Lowe to save her time and time again. The two times that she picks up a weapon her skill is attributed to “beginner’s luck”. She is treated horribly by Hansel, and just takes it like the good little girl she is written to be. I wanted to scream.

The other character imitations included were Darth Vader, C3P0, Han Solo, Chewbacca & Luke. The aforementioned Hansel Lowe is a disgraceful and disrespectful imitation of Han Solo down to calling Imoen “Highness” and the like, but he treats her in a way that I could never envision Han treating Leia.

The Chewbacca character is a bear called Smokey who has these strange mechanical attachments on his arms that might be cool if used differently. The Darth Vader character is called Lord Baron, which I found to be the laziest character name I’ve come across in a long time.

Luke is never named. Instead of being a Jedi he is a Quantum Dragoon and has an electric sword called a Storm Foil. The artwork on him is pretty good as it is on Duchess Imoen.

The C3P0 character is somewhat odd, he’s a snarky, pipe smoking, wine drinking Victorian gentleman named CL-335, but he doesn’t add much to the story.

I could have looked past all the cheese of the other characters and been ok with the comic, perhaps even have liked it. However, the fact that they made the decision to take a strong, self saving princess and turn her into a simpering helpless girl is unforgivable to me. Princess Leia deserves to be treated so much better in any incarnation parody or not.

This treatment of a character based on Princess Leia is perfect example of the the larger issues facing women in comics. There is only one female character in the story and she is entirely reliant on the men around her to survive. The fact that she is based on such an amazingly strong and competent character just adds insult to injury. We need more strong females in comics, not more damsels in distress.

Fantasy film, television and book convention to be held July 30-August 3 in Orlando

If you know how to destroy a horcrux, what to do with a TARDIS and who Sam, Dean and Castiel are, then chances are you are headed to Orlando this summer for the sixth annual LeakyCon, one of the largest and most recognized conventions for fans of fantasy films, television shows and books. LeakyCon will be held at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida July 30-August 3. Tickets are on sale now at www.LeakyCon.com.

Attendees can participate in programming that caters specifically to them and meet a community of like-minded enthusiasts. LeakyCon includes a wide array of special events, panel discussions, Q&A sessions, workshops, live performances, music concerts, celebrity meet-and-greets and a marketplace with a variety of vendors. Attendees will get a chance to meet their favorite authors, take pictures with celebrities from film and television and have 5 days of nerdy fun.

This year’s LeakyCon will also feature a special private event at the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios Orlando. The new attraction will be closed to the general public and available only to LeakyCon attendees, who will have an exclusive opportunity to see the Harry Potter-themed park.

In addition to the main convention, LeakyCon offers a special literary track with programming focused on books, featuring hands-on sessions and events with some of today’s most popular authors for teens and young adults.

“LeakyCon creates memorable crossroads between stories, those who love them and those who create them,” said Melissa Anelli, co-founder and director of LeakyCon. “This is all about being a fan and celebrating being nerdy and geeky in a fun, positive environment; it’s the ultimate outlet for fans to embrace their passions.”

Past events have included special guests from the Harry Potter films, “The Hunger Games,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries,” “Glee,” “Supernatural,” “Doctor Who,” “Sherlock,” “Sinbad,” “How I Met Your Mother” and many more films and television shows as well as authors of some of the top young adult books.

Attendees can choose between four different types of tickets. General admission tickets are available for $175 and include access to most of the events at the convention; general admission plus literary tickets are available for $275 and include general admission access plus special literary track programming; Rockstar tickets are sold for $375 and include preferred access to all events including literary track programming; and literary focus tickets are available for $125 and include access to literary track programming only. Tickets can be purchased online at www.LeakyCon.com.

LeakyCon is one of the largest and most recognized annual fandom conventions in the world and is attended every year by thousands of fantasy film, television and book fans. The event was started in 2009 as a conference for Harry Potter fans and has since grown to include fans of some of the most popular films, television shows and books in the genre such as “Doctor Who,” “Game of Thrones,” “The Hunger Games,” “Supernatural” and “Firefly.” Past events have been held in Boston, Orlando, Chicago, Portland and London. More information is available at www.LeakyCon.com.

Northwest Press is pleased to unveil its new comics anthology Anything That Loves, which features comics creators telling stories about romance and sexuality outside of the categories of “gay” and “straight.” Even though the book hasn’t been released yet, it is already set to be one of Northwest Press’ most popular releases, garnering 1000 backers during its Kickstarter funding drive in May.

The anthology features contributions both long-established and new creators, with brand-new work from MariNaomi, Amy T. Falcone, Jason Thompson, Kevin Boze, Roberta Gregory, Tara Madison Avery, and Nick Leonard and a full roster that includes Erika Moen, Maurice Vellekoop, Ellen Forney, Leanne Franson… more than 30 contributors in all.

Anything That Loves

Anything That Loves features an introduction from editor Charles “Zan” Christensen, explaining the origins of the project and the reason he felt it was important, as a gay man, to tackle the topic of prejudice against bisexuality.

“Could repression of same-sex attraction by bisexual people,” writes Christensen, “be the major contributor to the myth that gay people can ‘choose’ heterosexuality? They aren’t ‘gay’ and hiding it, and being ‘bisexual’ really isn’t something that straight or gay culture puts much stock in. It’s all-or-nothing, and people cram themselves into the box that seems to chafe the least. Could the refusal to accept the existence of bisexuality, then, be a root cause of homophobia itself?”

“Every reader will resonate with some of these tales; others will surprise,” writes PoMoSexuals author Carol Queen, PhD, in her foreword to Anything That Loves. “That’s just how it ought to be! We’re all the same and different, all at once. Between this book and The Rocky Horror Picture Show you ought to be equipped to meet, enjoy, love—and possibly sleep with—just about anybody.”

Northwest Press is a book publisher dedicated to publishing the best lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender comics collections and graphic novels. The company has published eight full-length print graphic novels and over three dozen digital books since its inception in 2010. Its first book, Jon Macy’s Teleny and Camille, received a Lambda Literary Award, and Northwest’s publisher Charles “Zan” Christensen has been recognized as one of OUT magazine’s “OUT 100” and by Gay.net as one of “13 to Watch in 2013“.

Anything That Loves is 216 pages and retails for $29.99. The book made its debut at Comic-Con International in San Diego this month, and will be in Diamond’s PREVIEWS catalog in September for sale in comics shops in November. It will also be available through Apple’s iTunes for reading on the iPad, iPod touch or iPhone, as well as Gumroad and other digital outlets, and direct from the publisher.

PORTLAND, OR — June 26, 2013 — At LeakyCon, a convention that grew out of the worldwide Harry Potter fan community, Scholastic, the U.S. publisher of the Harry Potter series, will reveal the third of the seven new Harry Potter covers illustrated by bestselling author/illustrator, Kazu Kibuishi. ­The artwork depicts a key moment in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, the third novel by J.K. Rowling about the boy wizard.

Cheryl Klein, senior editor at Arthur A. Levine Books and a continuity editor on the Harry Potter series, will unveil the new cover during the LeakyCon opening ceremonies on June 27 at the Oregon Convention Center, making this a special moment for fans at LeakyCon who have grown up with the novels.

­The new artwork for the first novel, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, was released on the television program Good Morning America in February, while the second, depicting Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, was released at this year’s Book Expo America (BEA) in New York. Th­e artwork released at LeakyCon will appear in new trade paperbacks of all seven books in the series, to be released in coordination with the 15th Anniversary of the release of the U.S. publication of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the original book in the bestselling series.

LeakyCon blends the nerdy fun of a Comic-Con with the community and excitement of South by Southwest. It celebrates everything about being a fan, from creations and costumes to debates and discussions.

Additional special guests include Jackie Emerson (Foxface) from ­The Hunger Games, Amber Benson (Tara Maclay) and Tom Lenk (Andrew Wells) from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series, Anthony Rapp (Mark Cohen) from both the original Broadway cast of Rent as well as the adaptation, and actors and creators from Th­e Lizzie Bennet Diaries, the successful modern-day vlog adaptation of the classic Jane Austen novel Pride and Prejudice.

Among the events covered over the four-day convention are live rock shows, panels, workshops, meet-and-greets and special guest signings, a 5K nerdy fun run, talent and costume competitions, and the Esther Earl Rocking Charity Ball, held on the ‑nal night of the convention. With a focus on community and giving people of all ages a place to call home, LeakyCon delivers a unique experience to all who attend.

LeakyCon will also present LeakyLit, a special two-day “conference within a conference” focusing on Children’s and Young Adult literature. Planned in coordination with New York Times bestselling authors Maureen Johnson and Robin Wasserman, the lineup of writers, agents, and editors includes heavy-hitting industry professionals such as Lev Grossman, David Levithan, Lauren Myracle, Laini Taylor, and more.

Each of the seven new trade paperback covers, which will be in stores on August 27, 2013, depict a distinctive and memorable moment from the respective book. ­The collection will also be released in August as a boxed set.

LeakyCon is a fan conference which comes from and celebrates everything about the Harry Potter fandom. LeakyCon is a place where fans can be themselves.

LeakyCon 2013 is the fourth Harry Potter fan conference produced by Mischief Management and follows LeakyCon 2012, held in Chicago, IL in August of 2012.

­The four-day fan conference is strongly rooted in the Harry Potter fandom, featuring appearances by Devon Murray, Scarlett Byrne, and Ellie Darcey-Alden, all actors from the Harry Potter franchise, as well as a full literary track that includes New York Times bestselling authors Maureen Johnson, Lev Grossman, Robin Wasserman, and more.

LeakyCon features a wide array of formal and informal programming for attendees, including exclusive special events, a literary track, speaker panels, roundtables, rock concerts, a quidditch tournament, costume contests, podcasts, vendor room, and a charity ball.

LeakyCon has raised more than $200,000 for various causes in its short history. In 2013, LeakyCon also announced the ‑rst LeakyCon Academic Scholarship and Arts Fellowship to help the fan community in the pursuit of education and creation of works of art.

LeakyCon 2013 is June 27-30, 2013, at the Oregon Convention Center in Portland, OR.

Seattle, WA – The versatile and recognizable Michael Biehn (“Kyle Reese” The Terminator 1 & T2: Judgment Day, ”Johnny Ringo” from Tombstone, ”Hicks” from Aliens) is the third celebrity guest announced for the upcoming 12th annual Emerald City Comicon taking place on March 28th – 30th, 2014 at the Washington State Convention Center. He will be appearing all three days!

Michael Biehn is one of those prolific actors and familiar faces that makes it impossible not to have enjoyed at least one of his films. He is arguably best known to mainstream audiences as bad guy “Johnny Ringo” in the cult western classic Tombstone which co-starred Val Kilmer and Kurt Russell. But fans of Sci-Fi fare will know him as both futuristic hero “Kyle Reese” in The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day as well as space marine “Cpl. Hicks” in Aliens, all three films by director James Cameron. Biehn’s partnership with Cameron would continue in the 1989 underwater adventure The Abyss.

I came across time for you Sarah. I love you; I always have.

Biehn has played a Navy Seal on the big screen on no less than three occasions: the aforementioned The Abyss, the 1990 film Navy Seals co-starring Charlie Sheen and the Michael Bay action romp The Rock starring Sean Connery and Nicholas Cage.

Getting his start on television shows such as James at 16, Logan’s Run and Family, Biehn ended up with a recurring role on the critically acclaimed cop drama Hill Street Blues as “Officer Randall Buttman.” He quickly found work on the big screen in the 1983 military piece The Lords of Discipline. He also has an uncredited role as the athlete “Mike” in the 1978 musical Grease starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.

In recent years, Biehn has returned to television with appearances on Criminal Minds, Adventure Inc., The Magnificent Seven and Law and Order: Criminal Intent, while continuing to tackle roles on the big screen in films including K2, Quentin Tarrantino’s Planet Terror, and Megiddo: The Omega Code 2. He can next me seen in the upcoming cable series 24 Hour Rental, about a group of petty criminals that operate a shady video rental store.

Biehn was born in Anniston, Alabama. After moving Arizona as youth, he took part in the high school drama program at Lake Havasu City before eventually studying acting at the University of Arizona.

Also attending with Biehn will be his wife, actress Jennifer Blanc, best known for her work as “Kendra Maibaum” on the cult television series by James Cameron Dark Angel starring Jessica Alba and as “Kate Bishop” on the FOX drama Party of Five. Other credits include Touched By Angel, Veronica Mars, CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Both Biehn and Blanc appear together in the independent 2011 film The VIctim, which they also produced.

I’ll be your huckleberry

Biehn and Blanc join previously announced celebrity guests Nichelle Nichols (“Lt. Uhura” from Star Trek) and Richard Dean Anderson (star of MacGyver, Stargate SG-1). Roughly two dozen celebrity guests in all will be announced for this spectacular weekend, in addition to hundreds of popular comic guests, exhibitors and several exciting new offerings and surprises.

Coming off of a sold out 2013 show, tickets for Emerald City Comicon 2014 will be in high demand when they go on sale September 1st, 2014!

With a record turnout of 64,000 patrons in 2013, Emerald City Comicon consistently ranks as one of the Top 10 most attended conventions of its kind in North America as well as increasingly becoming the favorite show among many fans, comic guests, journalists and celebrities.

Established in 2003, Emerald City Comicon, while renowned worldwide for its growing popularity, continues to remain the Northwest’s premier comic book and pop culture convention founded in the belief that investing in local artists, companies and individuals is a lasting recipe for success and longevity.

Seattle, WA – Beautiful and multi-talented actress Danai Gurira (“Michonne” from The Walking Dead) is the twelfth special celebrity guest announced for the upcoming Emerald City Comicon taking place on March 1st – 3rd, 2013 at the Washington State Convention Center. She will be appearing all three days!

Danai Gurira is best known as the mysterious and deadly “Michonne” on AMC’s The Walking Dead, who has quickly become a viewer favorite during the show’s third season. Her character is a force to be reckoned with, not only sporting a dangerous katana but also also having two zombies, whom she has removed the jaws from, shackled in tow with her.

Other television credits include Law and Order: Criminal Intent, Lie to Me, HBO’s Treme and the US version of the hit series Life On Mars.

Gurira was critically praised for her co-starring role as “Zainab” in the 2007 Oscar-nominated film The Visitor, about a lonely middle-aged man forced to deal with the issues of immigration and cross-culture communication in post-9/11 New York City. The film nabbed her the award for Best Supporting Actress from the Method Fest Film Festival.

Gurira’s also appeared as “Jeanne-Baptiste” Wes Craven’s horror flick My Soul to Take, the Ricky Gervais comedy Ghost Town and in the independent film Restless City.

Gurira is also an accomplished playwright, having received multiple honors, including an Obie and the Helen Hayes Award, for her play In the Continuum, which dealt with two black women living with HIV. Other plays she penned include the Sierra Leone and Liberia civil war drama Eclipsed and the 19th Century period piece The Convert, about a woman who turns to Catholicism to escape an arranged marriage. She made her Broadway debut in the August Wilson play Joe Turner’s Come and Gone.

With record-breaking attendance of over 53,000 attendees in 2012, Emerald City Comicon has established itself as one of North America’s largest and most respected shows of its kind anywhere in the world and has become the premier event of its kind in the Northwest. Founded in 2003 by Seattle-area entrepreneur and Geekwire’s “Geek of the Year” Award winner Jim Demonakos, ECCC has become highly regarded in both national and international circles as one of the most fan and family-friendly shows in existence.

Look for regular press releases containing all of the latest news leading up to the show in March 2013. For more information, please visit ECCC’s website at www.emeraldcitycomicon.com

Seattle, WA – Captivating young British actress Natalia Tena (“Nymphadora Tonks” from the Harry Potter films, ”Osha” from HBO’s Game of Thrones) is the fourth special celebrity guest announced for the upcoming Emerald City Comicon taking place on March 1st – 3rd, 2013 at the Washington State Convention Center. She will be appearing all three days and for the first time ever in Washington State!

Tena is perhaps best known to fans as the mysterious “Tonks” in the Harry Potter films Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince and Death Hallows Part 1 & 2. She can currently be seen on the hit HBO series Game of Thrones playing the wildling “Osha.” She was first introduced to film audiences as the grunge girl “Ellie” in Hugh Grant’s 2002 comedy drama About A Boy. She most recently appeared in this year’s Bel Ami, starring Robert Pattinson and Uma Thurman.

Born in the UK to Spanish parents, Tena also made a name for herself on the London stage in such prominent roles as “Fewers” in Night at the Circus and”Desdemona” in Othello.

Tena claims that her audition for Harry Potter was a spur-of-the-moment decision. After accidentally tripping over a table and chair upon arrival, she gave producers the impression that she was naturally clumsy (a strong character trait of “Tonks”).

Joining Tena at ECCC 2013 will be previously announced guests Sir Patrick Stewart (“Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek The Next Generation, “Dr. Charles Xavier” from the X-Men films), Billy DeeWilliams (“Lando Calrissian” from The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi) and Walter Koenig (“Chekov” from classic Star Trek). There will be over a dozen fantastic celebrity guests in all!

Tickets for Emerald City Comicon 2013 are ON SALE NOW byvisiting www.emeraldcitycomicon.com or any number of local comic book stores, also listed on the website!

With record-breaking attendance of over 53,000 attendees in 2012, Emerald City Comicon has established itself as one of North America’s largest and most respected shows of its kind anywhere in the world and has become the premier event of its kind in the Northwest. Founded by Seattle-area entrepreneur and Geekwire’s “Geek of the Year” Award winner Jim Demonakos in 2003, ECCC has become highly regarded in both national and international circles as one of the most fan and family-friendly shows in existence.

Look for regular press releases containing all of the latest news leading up to the show in March 2013. For more information, please visit ECCC’s website at www.emeraldcitycomicon.com